Fifty-Two Weeks

Now Trending in Nail Art: the Radiant Orchid Check this out! I got an email today from one of the nail sources, Nails Magazine, I use and they showed how Radiant Orchid is inspiring new nail art trends!  http://www.nailsmag.com/article/107306/trend-watch-radiant-orchid?ref=enews-latest-20140430&utm_source=Email&utm_medium=Enewsletter&utm_campaign=The-Latest-from-NAILS-20140430 After you read the article, I would love to know what you think about Radiant Orchid inspired nail art! If you have had your nails done recently, feel free to share! I would love to feature them on the blog. Be Radiant! Amanda #fiftytwoweeksofnails @theradiantamanda

FLOWER Radiance Good Evening Everyone! I am super excited for this weeks color of the week. Its a color by a new brand called Flower by Drew Barrymore.  Not only does this brand have nail polish, but they also have other great beauty products that you should try out.  I for one, just love the brand's philosophy: Philosophy You no longer have to spend a lot of money to get the quality cosmetics you want and deserve. How do we do it? We do not pay for advertising. Where other beauty brands spend a vast percentage of the cost of their products on ads, we do not. Drew, as an owner of the brand, takes pride in promoting Flower, which in turn allows us to put all of our resources into the formulas and packaging, and not into advertising. Custom-formulated with the same ingredients used in luxury make-up, our exclusive botanical-infused Soft-Focus Complex illuminates for a lit-from-within effect. All products are proudly made in the USA and are never tested on anim...

A Sense of Place through Polish I absolutely love this story! (see link below) I personally use nail polish as a way to subtly show people who I am or how I am feeling, so the idea of nail polish representing where I am from would be icing on the cake.  Check out this story about a lady who turned a hobby into a representation of her area where she lives:  Local Woman Creates Buffalo-Themed Nail Polish on WGRZ.com:   http://on.wgrz.com/1j62hRX Check out her polish website:  http://www.gridlocklacquer.com/home.html Let's hear your thoughts on this topic? Be Radiant! Amanda

B.Y.O.B. I personally, am not a huge fan of discount nail salons, but I do frequent them in times of the urgent need for a manicure or pedicure for an event or a special occasion. Like many of you, I don't put up much fuss about the products that are used, but lately I have been noticing a few things that I may begin to fuss over. Nail polish and spa products are expensive. Plain and Simple. Even for nail techs like myself, I still have to pay a right good price for the products that I use on my clients. Many discount salons though are finding more and more way to rake in more money by using cheaper and/or generic products. Here's the scoop - I don't want you to be fooled! Many discount salons are filling expensive brand name lotion bottles with cheap generic lotion. This way they can charge you more and claim to use prestige products. (and the cheap lotion does nothing but make your skin smell good) If you go into a salon and see a lotion bottle without a name...

Princesses Rule with Radiance Hi Everyone! This week's post about the color of the week is brought to you by a friend and coworker of mine who had a great manicure done recently! My friend Beverley had a mani done and and her color choice is a perfect, simple, delicate but also very charming pink color.  I love this color! It is an OPI color named Princesses Rule. Even better, it looks great on Beverley's nails too! I for one, think that the title is ever so fitting! Princesses Rule will definitely be a color that I will be adding to my OPI collection not just because of it's amazing color, but also because of it's long wear. This color lasts! If you're interested in picking up a bottle of this great polish, check out your local Ulta store, local OPI dealer, or online at  amazon.com .  A special thanks to Beverley for letting me post about her nails on the blog for this week's color! If you have had a manicure or pedicure lately and woul...

Happy Easter!  Happy Easter readers! I hope you day is filled with fun, family, love, wonderful colors or whatever else you wish on this lovely day!  Picture courteous of Pantone. (If you're not already, you should follow @pantone on Instagram!) Do you have a great mani for Easter? Please contact the blog! I would love to post about your nails! Be Radiant! Amanda

To File, or Not to File? It's been a while since I posted a nail safety/salon safety post so I thought it was time to talk about something most people haven't realized they've been doing wrong or have been letting their nail technician do wrong. Did you know that there is a right and a wrong way to file your fingernails? The shape of your nails really tops off your manicure. So, before you start filing and painting away, it's important for you to know how to file your nails properly. First, choose the right kind of nail file. Sometimes, the cheaper the better - in many cases the most basic and inexpensive emery boards are more flexible and easier on your nails. The grit on metal files can often be too harsh and can cause your nails to peel and chip. Stick to a simple drugstore file, it should do the job and it'll save you some money too. I myself, use simple wooden core files that I buy in bulk from my nail products store. I like these files becau...

1000+ Views! The blog has reached 1000+ Views and I am so proud! Thank you to everyone who has been reading and helping me throughout this process! Let's keep it up, and hopefully we will be on our way to 2000 views!  Please share the blog with your friends and family: www.fiftytwoweeksofnails.blogspot.com Or share my posts when you see them on facebook: www.facebook.com/amhbubbles Or follow me and my images on Instagram:  @theradiantamanda Or post your own images on Instagram: #fiftytwoweeksofnails As always - Be Radiant! Amanda

Radiant Mira Easter Nails Happy Easter Everyone! To prepare for the upcoming Easter Holiday, I thought it might be fun to do some special Easter Bunny Nails for this weeks nails of the week! If you are following me on Instagram, then you have already has a special sneak peak at my lovely bunny nails.  This week's color is Mira by Zoya. It is a wonderful purple creme nail polish that was the perfect base for my holiday nails. The other day I decided to go have my toes done with my mom and the nail tech who did my pedicure was so excited to paint these bunnies on my toes! She hand painted each rabbit using a multitude of different polishes and paints. I think they look smashing on top of Mira! Here is an up close view of Mira and my bunnies: This is the image that my nail tech looked at for inspiration when painting my toes. Never feel bad about showing your nail tech examples of what you would like! Sometimes it's a great help and can aid the tech in ...

Dazzling Diamond Dust Have you guys seen this?! It's a new color by Julep that has real Diamond Dust in it! It's called Coretta , and I may just have to score me a bottle... Interested in becoming a Julep Maven? Head on over to  Julep.com  to check it out! If you want to sign up, feel free to use my reference code: (copy and paste this link into your browser)  http://www.julep.com/rewardsref/index/refer/id/203439/ Don't forget to check out Fifty Two Weeks on Instagram! #fiftytwoweeksofnails @theradiantamanda Be Radiant! Amanda

A Mod Square full of Radiance Hello Readers! This week's color was picked and used by my good friend Grace and I thought it would be a great choice for this week!  The color for the week is an Essie color called Mod Square . Mod Square is a great solid pink creme color leaning on the edge of almost being considered a shade of hot pink.  I think Grace did a great job on her nails. She even used the Essie base and top coat to make it a complete package! Interested in getting some of these Essie colors for your stockpile? You can find Essie at your local Ulta store, your local big name pharmacy (I get mine at Rite Aid) or Walmart, or even online at Amazon.  Have you painted your nails recently?! If so, I would love to share your nails on the blog - and no, they don't have to be just pink, purple or fuchsia! You can also share your nails on Instagram: #fiftytwoweeksofnails @theradiantamanda Be Radiant! Amanda

A New Spring Color Check out what I got during a great Julep Sale! I got a fun pink color named Veronica and I got an awesome blue color named Monaco.  I am so excited about Monaco  because it is inspired by Pantone's color for Spring 2014.  Interested in Julep polish and products or becoming a Julep Maven? Then just head on over to  Julep.com  to make purchases or sign up for boxes! Be Radiant! Amanda

Fun Zoya Nails Check out my friend Beverley's fun nails! She used a great Zoya color and even added a fun accent nail.  Zoya has a section just for Radiant Orchid Nail polish for the color of the year! You should go check it out at  Zoya.com .  Be Radiant! Amanda